by Sam Crescent
He smiled even though he didn’t feel like it. “Just wish we could have invited Gash home with a lot more loving than telling him to stay as sober as possible for a club meeting later.”
“You’re going to bring him up to speed on his first day back?”
“There’s no point in prolonging this giving him a false sense that everything is going to be okay.” Tiny shrugged. “Like I said, wish we were all under better circumstances.”
Pulling away from his wife, Tiny went to put the meat on the barbeque. The women had gone to the fuss of preparing salads and little fancy stuff that he’d never eat. He was a meat and potatoes man all the way. Tiny refused to eat the salads. Even if it meant getting into Eva’s pants, he still wouldn’t eat that shit.
Flipping burgers, he changed his beer for water. There would be time for drinking later when all the serious crap was out of the way. The only reason he was waiting was so Gash got a chance to meet all the family.
“I can’t believe how different this place is,” Gash said, coming to lean against the wall near where Tiny was cooking.
“What do you mean?” Tiny didn’t take his gaze off the meat.
“There are a couple of guys here I’ve never seen before. One of them is fucking huge, but I’m told not to really talk to him, Whizz, the dude that’s great with a computer. The other is Killer. That bastard just looks scary. I’d have loved to see him on the inside with all those crazy fucks. It would have made for some entertainment.” Gash stopped talking to swig down his beer.
“I’m really sorry it has been some time since I visited you.”
“Don’t worry about it. Everyone has women and family to take care of. Did you see Lash? I thought he was going to kill me.” Gash laughed. “It’s insane. I heard what happened to Nash with the drugs. I’m pleased you put him through the wringer but didn’t get rid of him. He’s been to see me a couple of times.”
Turning from the burgers Tiny looked at the man who’d been put in jail for convictions that had nothing to do with him.
“I know you’re not going to like this, but you can’t go out seeking revenge just yet.”
“You’re not the right person to be telling me what I should or shouldn’t do,” Gash said. “You’ve taken your revenge out on everyone who’s done you harm.”
“We’re going to have a meeting and bring you up to speed. I’m telling you that you can get your revenge, but you’ve got to wait for any retaliation.”
“Nash told me I could get Whizz to find out where the bitch lives. I’m going to take her out, and then I’m going to kill any man who worked toward putting me inside.”
“Whizz has an order not to help you until we deal with Gonzalez. That’s a fucking order. I know you’re fucking hurting and want to deal with this shit. The club comes first. We’ve got a full house, and Patricia’s grave has already been desecrated. I’m asking you as a friend, but I’m telling you as your president.” He pointed the fish slice at Gash, waiting for him to respond.
For several seconds, Gash didn’t say a word.
“Fine. I won’t do shit, but I swear, Tiny, when all this shit is over, I’m going to take my revenge.”
“Killing her will put you back on the inside.”
“Not if they don’t find the body, and not having a body is what I intend to do.” Gash moved away from the wall. “I’m going to talk with someone else.”
Gash was gone leaving Tiny alone to finish up the burgers.
“He pissed that he can’t go and take out the problem?” Alex asked, joining him.
“You’re approaching me now when we’re surrounded by kids and women?”
“I figured you’d attack me either way if you were pissed enough.” Alex’s hands were thrust inside his jeans pocket. The casual look didn’t suit Alex at all.
“I’m not pissed. Eva had a right to know what’s going on. I’d already told her most of it, just not all of it.” He turned to see Eva talking with Angel. The possibilities with Angel had opened up options in his mind that he didn’t think were possible. He filed the information away for later. “Do we know if he’s been asked to do more?”
“No, we don’t. He’s not been contacted yet, but I imagine it will only be a matter of time. What I’m worried about is what Butch will be asked to do. Gonzalez is going to play with him, and it’s going to get dirty.”
“Whatever happens, his family will be well cared for.” Tiny saw Cheryl standing with Matthew and Butch, who looked happy.
He saw the conflict within Butch. It wasn’t going to be easy for Butch to do what he needed to do. Tiny only hoped it didn’t involve any of the women.
For the next few hours he ate, drank, and spent a great deal of time with his wife. By the afternoon the kids were starting to get restless and tired. The barbeque had long finished, and Gash was starting to look pissed. The alcohol was no longer flowing like Tiny had hoped for Gash’s return.
Entering his office, he took a seat behind the desk and stared at the blank computer screen in front of him. His men would start entering along with some of the Chaos Bleeds crew, but that would be all.
Running a hand down his face, he was starting to feel his years. It had been too long since he had the chance to relax.
The phone on his desk rang. Picking up the receiver he greeted whoever was on the line.
“Having fun at the party?” Gonzalez asked, bringing Tiny onto the alert.
“It’s going okay.”
“I’m sad. I thought I’d get an invite seeing as I’m technically your boss.”
Turning his hand into fists at his side, Tiny tried to keep his anger locked within. The last thing he wanted to do was anger Gonzalez. They were not strong enough yet to take the bastard out.
Why not do what Devil has done?
His gut was telling him to hold off on an attack. If they struck out too soon then Gonzalez would be the one coming out the victor. Tiny knew his own men and that Ned also had favors to bring in to take this bastard down. What he didn’t know was how many men Gonzalez had working for him.
Years ago, he’d have busted into this guy’s glace and taken him out without a second thought. Today it was all different. He had too much to lose. The thought of anything happening to Eva scared him to the core.
“We’ve all been busy. I’m afraid there was no time to invite you.”
Gonzalez chuckled and tutted over the line. “You’re lying to me. I hate it when I’m lied to. People tend to get hurt or even killed when I’m lied to, and you’ve got a lot of people together in one place. Do you know how dangerous that is?”
Tiny stood up. “You fucking touch my club—”
“Calm down, Tiny. You’re losing your touch as a president. Drawing all of your people into one building is risky. I mean, your clubhouse has been blown up before. I’m sure it’ll be easy to do again.”
Sandy had been the one to blow up the clubhouse the last time. They didn’t have a chance as the club had been divided and The Darkness had been trying to take over Fort Wills.
“We’re here for a wedding. You want to fuck up the two couples’ happiness, then fine, blow us the fuck up. We’ve got friends here to celebrate a wedding and one of our men coming back to us.”
One by one the men started to file into the room.
“One of the men on the force, one of my men, has been found dead. His car veered off the road into a tree. I’ve just got the news. Have you heard anything about that?” Gonzalez asked.
Tiny took a moment to collect his thoughts. He didn’t want Butch knowing the truth. This had been set up between Alex and Whizz. “Hold on.” He dropped the receiver from his ear and shouted. “Whizz, have you heard anything about a man on the force hitting a tree? Something to do with his car?”
Whizz raised a brow, taking his time. “No, I’ve not heard shit.”
Putting the receiver to his ear, he started to talk. “Nope, nothing has hit us. Are you sure it was a Fort Wills man?”
&nb
sp; “I’m not so easily fooled. Something is going on, and I’ll find out the truth.”
“You’re not going to find shit.”
“Now, Tiny, you don’t need to panic. I’ve got plenty of fun to be had in time. I mean, Devil’s the one I’m really pissed at. He killed one of my men and took out one of my factories. I’m not happy with him. Maybe we could make a trade.”
“What?” Tiny asked, staring at the man in question.
“Give me Devil and his crew and I’ll leave you and Fort Wills alone.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“And that’s why you, your club, and all the families connected with you are going to die. You’re not the kind of man to make the hard decision. I’ll be in touch.”
The call ended, and Tiny placed the receiver back in its place, cursing.
“Gonzalez?” Devil asked.
“Yeah. He’s disappointed we didn’t extend him an invitation to our little get-together.”
Gash leaned against the door with a raised brow. “He actually thought he had the right to be here?” Gash asked.
“Gonzalez believes he holds all the cards,” Whizz said. “He’s mistaken.”
“What have you found out?” Tiny asked, turning his attention back to Whizz.
“His father set up his European base of being the king of the criminal world, like a mafia boss, without the attitude. He was crazy, insane, and he was unpredictable. Gonzalez senior in his early years had been known for lashing out and fighting bloody. He’d kill people for saying a wrong word to him. He took out Butch’s family and the club his father was part of, and he even killed his wife in front of his son. His wife was the daughter of one of his associates. Her death meant they had to flee Europe as there was a price on Daddy Gonzalez’s head. He started to gain ground on American soil, and then for some reason, he simply upped and left, going back to Europe. I found out that his deceased wife’s father had in fact died. The reward on his head dropped, which was why he returned to Europe. Then baby Gonzalez grew up and killed his father, taking over the operation. However, baby Gonzalez wanted American soil, and because of that, his European base weakened. He’s no longer the one running shit there. It’s been taken over by some Spanish guy. I can’t pronounce his name, and it doesn’t matter. I’ve been in touch with him, and he doesn’t want Gonzalez back on his soil. He wants Gonzalez in the ground.”
Tiny saw the tension inside Butch. Something there didn’t sit right with him. There was nothing that Whizz said that wasn’t the truth, unless there was something wrong with the facts.
Glancing at Alex, Tiny saw his former brother-in-law was also staring at Butch strangely.
“He gave all of that up to come here,” Whizz said. “Gonzalez’s old life is gone. Someone else has taken up his place. His old allies have pretty much spat him back out as if he tasted bad.”
“What are you saying? Gonzalez only has what he’s got here?”
“Pretty much. The problem we’ve got, is that he’s got a lot of favors he can pull in. The raid we got a few months back was called in by a favor from a cop. Gonzalez is your average run of the mill salesman until you get to know him. He draws you in, sets everything up, and uses what he’s got against you. The biggest problem is the girls and the smuggled drugs. He clearly has connections elsewhere, which is why he has a constant supply. I’ve been in touch with three people, and I just got another five around Vegas and near Fort Wills. They’re backing down and won’t answer Gonzalez’s calls, but we’ve got to take him out. If we don’t take him out within the next month, they’ll finish what they started.” Whizz sat back, resting his head on his hand.
For the first time since Whizz’s attack, he actually looked normal.
“We don’t take Gonzalez out in time, they’re coming for us as planned? What’s going to happen to the people supplying him?” Zero asked.
“The Spanish guy is in talks to take over from the suppliers. We take out Gonzalez and he’s more than happy to deal with the suppliers. First, we need to take Gonzalez out and worry about the men closest to us. I’m working on getting them to come out and talk to us, but it takes a lot longer to convince people to come to us. I’ve asked them what Gonzalez has on them, but they’re silent. Not that I blame them for being silent. I wouldn’t trust anyone with my secrets. I’m currently hacking into phones and numbers to get the information I need. It’ll take some time, but I’ll get it done,” Whizz said. “I’m not worried. Computers never lie.”
No one could deny Whizz was awesome.
Tiny looked toward Alex, who was still looking at Butch. The deep thought in Alex’s eyes made Tiny tense.
“Gonzalez also mentioned about giving you up, Devil,” Tiny said, turning to look at his friend.
“Me?”
“Yeah, you. He wanted to make a trade, you and your crew for me to be left alone along with Fort Wills.”
“Why didn’t you take the deal?” Devil asked.
“Do you really think he’ll leave us alone? He wants to know how far he can push. I’ve got a feeling he’s going to start trying to make us turn on each other.”
“Then he doesn’t know the kind of shit we’ve been through, does he?” Devil chuckled.
“It’s time you brought me up to speed on this Gonzalez guy,” Gash said. “He sounds like the kind of person who needs to be put down.”
“He is,” Butch said. “He’s a fucking bastard and the worst kind of sick fuck imaginable.”
“Sounds like fun. When do we kill him?” Gash had his arms folded over his chest, waiting for an answer.
“We can’t just kill him,” Zero said.
“Why not? This fucker is stopping me from taking care of some unfinished business. I want to do what I’ve been planning for the last five years. Get me a chance to take this fucker out and I’ll kill him. I’ve waited long enough for my revenge.” Gash grabbed the door handle. “I don’t need to know anything else.”
Gash walked out of the room without further notice.
“I guess there’s no point in a meeting,” Tiny said, watching his men file out of the room.
Devil stayed behind. Tiny was surprised Alex didn’t try to talk to him.
“What?” Tiny asked, standing up.
“You’re lying to me, and I want to know what the fuck is going on.” Devil folded his arms and refused to move.
Letting out a sigh, Tiny moved past him to close the door.
“We’ve got Butch pretending to be a spy for Gonzalez.” Tiny turned around to see Devil frowning.
“What?”
“It was Alex’s idea. Gonzalez was still under the illusion that we had to blackmail Butch to bring him back into the club. He doesn’t know that Butch begged us, not the other way around.”
“You think that’s going to work?”
“Patricia’s grave is a clear sign that Gonzalez believes it to be the truth.”
“Butch did that?”
Tiny nodded. “Yeah. Believe me, it was a shock. Butch doesn’t like the way he’s acting, but it needs to happen for Gonzalez to believe what’s going on.”
“This is dangerous. What happens if Butch has to attack one of our women or force her somewhere that puts her in danger? Alex isn’t a fucking president. He’s a jumped up business man who doesn’t have the first clue about running a club.”
Tiny almost laughed. Alex and Devil were not the best of friends.
“Be careful. He’s a Skull, and without his help we wouldn’t be standing where we are now.”
“I don’t give a fuck. He was never a biker. We are, Tiny. It’s time for you to start making your own decisions before the club life fucks up.”
Devil stormed out of the room leaving Tiny alone.
When had he stopped trusting his own judgment? Over the years Alex had taken more and more of a stand beside him. Was he letting Alex run The Skulls without him even realizing it?
“Hey, baby,” Eva said.
He glanced up to find his
woman leaning against the doorframe. “Do you think I’m losing my club?”
“What?”
Shaking his head, he tapped his finger on the desk. “Forget about it. It’s nothing.”
He really hoped it was nothing.
Chapter Five
One week after Gash’s return to the club life had gone back to some semblance of normal. Lockdown was finished, which surprised Eva. She hadn’t expected Tiny to lift the lockdown until Gonzalez was no longer a threat. Standing in the doorway of her kids’ bedroom, she watched as Miles and Tabitha played together. They were three years old and amazing children. She’d been blessed with a set of angels. Glancing down at her watch she saw it was a little after twelve. Tiny had left to go to the club at seven.
She missed being around him all day. Lockdowns were a burden and a pleasure for Eva. Being around Tiny and the club was always something she enjoyed. The problem she had was the danger lockdown always meant.
“Eva, I’m home,” Tate said, shouting out toward her. Securing the baby gate, she walked down the stairs to find Tate carrying Simon on her hip.
“Hey, honey. Is he here for me to look after?” Eva asked. She was the designated babysitter for the day. The Chaos Bleeds crew was still in town. They were staying at the club until after the wedding. Eva truly hoped they had an idea of what to do about Gonzalez by then. She would hate for them all to be separated with the danger still lurking at every corner.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind. I’m working on the desk at the dentist today. Kelsey isn’t back to work yet as she’s still on maternity leave. Killer is doing everything he can to make her quit. He hates her being a dental nurse.” Tate chuckled.
“I don’t blame him. I only go so I don’t have to stress about having a lot more work done.” Eva placed a hand in front of her lips.
“I stopped being afraid of the dentist a long time ago.”
“How’s the pregnancy going?” Eva asked, taking hold of a wiggling Simon. The moment she held him, he calmed down. Tiny and her father said she always had a knack when it came to kids. She loved being around them and was hoping she’d be having another child soon. Eva didn’t care how old she was or how old Tiny was. She wanted more kids and was going to have them.